Easter, Ashcroft to discuss Arar case

[Whoa_Nelly]

Ottawa — The United States could lose access to Canadian antiterrorism intelligence if it uses information supplied by Ottawa to deprive Canadians of their rights, Solicitor-General Wayne Easter says.

The minister said he intends to raise the case of Maher Arar — a Canadian deported from the United States last year to Syria as a terrorist suspect — when he meets today with U.S. Attorney-General John Ashcroft in Washington.

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U.S. Ambassador to Canada Paul Cellucci acknowledged that the decision to deport Mr. Arar to Syria was made by U.S. officials alone. But he also said that elements of the Canadian government did not want Mr. Arar back in Canada.

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"We need to say something because Arar is going to become shorthand for excess in the name of security, running roughshod over the rule of law," the (Bush Administration) official told the newspaper.

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